RESOLVED

- Helena Osorio

Ok.  So here I am, doing the Starbucks thing in Midtown Miami (by this I mean having coffee and attempting to write this post). Trés Chic if you ask me. I’m also trying not to feel like a fish out of water. Now a days if I’m not running behind a toddler or doing Mommy talk I feel disconnected from the world, maybe that is why I have a diaper and wipes in my purse – so I can rest assured at all times on the comfort of being a mother.

As a Mom, sooner than later I will have to deal with “back-to-school”. I’m about two years away from that traumatic milestone… So, I can’t really write out of experience on how to make the back to school thing easier, nor have a really funny anecdote to share yet.  I could go on about how horrible traffic is when school is in, or how people get in crazy manic mode at the supermarket the day before school starts…but you probably know about that yourself. (But seriously! Publix the day before first day of school was worse than when we have hurricane warnings! What’s up with Mom’s fighting for the last box of healthy snacks? Don’t they know they can get TastyBaby on Amazon *wink-wink*)

For the past week or so, back to school was the hot conversation topic, and boy was I was surprised at the different reactions I got from my friends (parents). Some had countdowns, some were sad, some were anxious. It really all depended on how old their kids are and how often they have gone through the back to school process.  
For my friend Eileen, it was the twin’s first day in Kindergarten, so there was a lot of anxiety, excitement, tears and pictures. My friend Greg, a confessed “not a morning person”, wanted to have the house back to himself in the mornings. Cracks me up.
Then there is my friend Sonia, who is a mother and a teacher.

She used to be a broadcast producer just like me, but about five years ago decided to start teaching so she could spend more time with her daughter. Brilliant move. I picked her brain, I wanted to know what it was like to be a teacher and go back to school.  What is it like to be off work for two months and have to go back? Did she feel nervous? What was more nerve wrecking her daughter starting Middle School or facing her new Middle School students?

About being the Mom of a Middle-Schooler, all she said was that the drive would be a killer. I think most Miamians who get to be stuck in stop and go traffic on 95 and 836 completely agree! You see we blame traffic on schools, even if it’s a Holyday, summer or a weekend.  

About the teacher business, I was really surprised to hear she didn’t stop thinking about school over the summer. That whenever she saw some fun new activity, she would make a note of it, so that she could try it during the new school year. She even looks out for sales to buy new decorations and tools she needs for her classroom, which she spends decorating about a week before school starts. She even did a power point presentation to introduce herself. I felt real old when she said that, ‘cause I don’t think power point existed when I went to school. As if that was not enough, she made it sound like it’s the same for teachers as for students, there are butterflies in her stomach, there is the worrying about what to wear to that first day, and the anxiety about not knowing who her students will be and how she will get along with them.

Since she only teaches 6th grade, she gets new students every year, so it’s like making new friends. I had honestly never thought about it this way. I had never stopped to think how teachers felt about facing a new group of students.
I can only imagine.  Last month I decided to take an online memoir writing class. I was petrified of writing my bio & writing for all to read, and I wasn’t even looking my teacher or classmates in the eye. True, that same anonymity made it easier to share some things without the worry of being judged, but still…I wrote stuff, tried to delete it, and then checked every five seconds to see if someone had commented on it. I think that the beautiful thing about school, whether you are a teacher or a student is that it makes you step out of your comfort zone.  I still have some time to get into Mom of a school kid mode. I’m sure it will be a challenge. Hopefully I’ll ease into it kind of like I’m doing today, surrounded by strangers, listening to Frank Sinatra, drinking some coffee and typing away. Or like my friend Sonia, who I’m sure is best friend with all her students by day 4 of school. We all just have to open up to new people and experiences, take a leap of faith and trust ourselves. So, all you can learn from back to school? Priceless!